If the Phillies are to get into the playoff hunt, they need these things to go right.

Every year during Charlie Manuel's tenure, the Phillies have posted a winning record in the second half. Overall from 2004 to 2012, his teams own a combined .602 winning percentage (397-263) after the All-Star break.

With the way they played the last month and their second-half history the last eight years, the Phillies (48-48) have general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. thinking that making a run at the playoffs is possible.

A myriad of things have to go just right for that to happen.

1. COLE HAMELS

The left-hander with the most lucrative contract in club history and the second-biggest in MLB history for a pitcher has to resemble the pitcher he's been for his last three starts (1.56 ERA, .229 BAA, 1 BB, 2 HR) and not the one in his first 17 games (4.58 ERA, .258 BAA, 33 BB, 13 HR).

2. THE BULLPEN

With the way the relievers pitched in a seven-game stretch from July 8-14, they showed promise. They allowed just five earned runs in 18 innings for a 2.50 ERA, a far cry from their season ERA of 4.39. Maybe the addition of the unknown Luis Garcia, who hadn't pitched above Single-A before this year, will help.

3. THE NEXT ROAD TRIP

It may decide whether Ruben Amaro Jr. is a buyer or seller at the trade deadline, which is July 31. The Phils come out of the break with three games at Citi Field; they're 6-3 against the Mets, then go on to play three in St. Louis (2-2 against this year) followed by a series in first-place Detroit.

4. SITUATIONAL HITTING

The Phillies' batting average with the bases loaded is atrocious (.193). And Dom Brown has done nothing to help matters there (0-for-9) or when he's at the plate with a runner on third and less than two outs, he's hitting .158 (3-for-19). Carlos Ruiz has several areas he needs to improve upon, including what he does when runners are in scoring position (5-for-35, .143)

5. CENTER FIELD

Who Amaro finds to replace Ben Revere, who broke a bone in his ankle last weekend just as he was starting to make an impact, could have a big effect on his team. Amaro's been pretty emphatic about not wanting John Mayberry Jr. to play there every day. How Cesar Hernandez develops in center field in the next 10 days with Double-A Reading could determine whether or not Amaro makes a trade for one.